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HERE WE GO AGAIN: WHAT CAN WE GAIN FROM [ANOTHER]
TV TUNEOUT?
Last updated 2/3/00
© 1997 BY DR. JEANNE BECKMAN
Each year as Winnetka's TV tuneout approaches,
there are those who ask, "Why participate again?" After all, they say, we
suffered through previous years of "no television for a week."
For many, the first TV tune-out was a time of
logistics, of figuring out just how a family could possibly survive without television for
a week. Many parents, especially those with younger children, came to the
realization that it was often the parents who had the greater need for their
children to watch television to help calm the children during hectic family times.
The second tune-out was a time of looking at the
bigger picture. Families tended to think about how the first tune-out had impacted
their family over the past year and planned how to modify their participation in the
second tuneout to fit their particular family. Some families chose to participate by
turning off their TV 100% of the time, while others felt more comfortable with partial
participation.
Dr. Jerome Singer is a professor of psychology at
Yale University who reminds parents to view TV as a stranger in their house. This
stranger, he says, teaches your kids to punch their way through conflict resolution and
tries to sell your children all kinds of products. Just as you'd kick a real
stranger out of your house if he tried to do these things to your children, you need to be
aware of what TV strangers are saying and doing to your children each day. You also
need to be aware of the moral messages you allow your children to see and hear without
your supervision.
In light of Dr. Singer's strong recommendation to
examine what your children are viewing, perhaps a goal for the next TV tuneout
might be to think about the television programs your children are either normally watching
or asking to watch. Ask yourself whether these programs portray the values or morals
that you, as the parent of your individual family, feel are important for your
child to learn.
I asked parents to tell me what they felt the most
important moral lesson they should teach their children. The most common answer I
heard was that we should teach our children to be honest, ethical, and fair. If
these are your beliefs, try to evaluate whether the shows your children watch either teach
or represent honest, ethical and fair behavior.
Continued>
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